Thursday, May 11, 2017

I have started reading a book that one of my closest friends recommended: Messy Beautiful Friendship. I am on page 38 and I think it is one of the best books I have ever read. This lady knows me. I want to quote something she said in her book and show you how beautifully it tied in with my Bible study for today.

"When I am disappointed with my friendships and I take time to dig a little deeper in my heart, I inevitably find that I'm looking for my friends to relate to me as only God can. I want God to give me good friends and when he has, I've been prone to shove him aside for the attention, wisdom, and companionship of those friends, despite knowing that they were intended as gifts rather than replacements. People are not fillers for a present God, and God is not a placeholder for future friends." (Messy Beautiful Friendship, Christine Hoover, pg. 38)

She goes on to describe how God has the ability to love us differently that people do because He knows us much more intimately and He can handle the weight, complexity, and emotion of all that we are. I love that. So many times I feel as though I am too much for my friends to handle, and it is likely true. But, I am not too much for God. What a sweet thought. What an encouraging thought.

Those were the words that I read as I fell asleep last night. Then this morning, I woke up and did my Bible study. I love how God orchestrates things we need to read/hear/ponder together so nicely. He is gracious to us like that. Today, my study was on John 6:22-42. We are talking about the I AM statements that Jesus spoke. When I got to verse 27, it stopped me in my tracks.

"Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." John 6:27 NKJV

I have been struggling in the area of friendship for about 3 years now. I have really been trying to figure out how to be a friend, how to keep friends, what it means to be a friend, etc....but what God is saying right here is to stop worrying and working so hard for the things that won't last. Yes, friendships are important but I FIRMLY believe that God will bring the right people into our lives to be our friends. I don't understand why I work so hard trying to prove myself to others....always worried about whether or not something is going to make someone not be my friend anymore. I read this verse and God whispered to me, "Seek me....the One that provides everlasting life. I will provide for you.....even friends....friends that you can trust....friends that won't leave you. Stop worrying about those that won't last, because they weren't meant to."

In John 6:33, it says "The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Jesus. He is the true bread. If we come to Him, we will never hunger. Jesus is not only the Provider, He is the Bread of life who never runs out and gives us exceedingly, abundantly more than we can imagine (Finding I Am, Lysa Terkeurst, pg. 35).

He says it. And if He says it, it has to be true. I can turn to Jesus for all of my needs. He is my provider. He is my source of life and the ONLY One that will give me true satisfaction. All I have to do is believe that. Believe that it is true with everything in my heart, mind, and soul - like my existence depends on it.